When Carole Brody Fleet lost her husband Mike to ALS, she was a young mother of a 9-year-old girl. Resources on how to navigate this unimaginable and frightening “widowhood journey” were hard to come by so she began writing.

She understood what it meant to feel alone and marginalized, and “wanted to be someone that people felt they could turn to.”

This award-winning author is not only a wonderful writer and tireless advocate for widows, she is also a long-time friend of mine and TWE. I first interviewed her nearly a decade ago after my dad passed away.

Her first book Widows Wear Stilettos was well-received within the widow community and beyond, and was a tremendous help to both me and my mom. Since then, she has been a frequent and welcome guest on the show, and she is my “hero!” (How’s that for a four-letter word?!)

Loss is a Four-Letter Word is the fourth in a series dealing with grief (including Happily EVEN After and When Bad Things Happen to Good Women).

In this book, readers have to ask themselves, “What what am I doing to facilitate my own healing?”

Fleet then guides them through actionable, reasonable baby steps which can help them start moving in a forward-focus (not “get over”), positive direction…to a place of peace. Says the motivational speaker: “I’m needed to be compassionate, but beyond that, what are we going to do to fix this? That’s my job.”

Through her boot-camp style lessons and end-of-chapter affirmations she calls EKITA (an acronym for “Extra Kick In The Ass”!), Fleet says she hopes those suffering through a challenging life-journey will gain a sense of empowerment.

Whether you are dealing with the loss of a spouse, beloved pet, or even the end of a job, Fleet says it is an honor to be there for people at their most challenging moment and to offer hope and promise.

“There are … things that I never knew that widowhood had taught me, and I am grateful for that experience.”